eucalyptus chandelier diy

when the holiday rolls around, eyes get bigger and budgets get tighter. we are on a super tight budget this holiday season, but i couldn't let it stop me from decorating for the holidays!

i saw this chandelier amanda of 100layercake made and absolutely loved it so i decided to make my own! all in all it's a lovely (and very cheap) diy to spruce up your home, especially if you have eucalyptus around your area. all i purchased was an embroidery hoop (for about a dollar at michael's) and used some wire to attach the branches to the hoop. voila!

(here's an in-the-progress shot from my instagram)

new lamp

loving my new little lamp (from etsy!), and still getting this house in order...

cream cheese and jam pastry

(from my instagram)



aren't mornings so much more productive when you have a little sweet pastry with your coffee? here's a recipe so simple you have no excuse not to indulge yourself!


cast of characters:

1 sheet puff pastry, cut into quarters (4 pieces)
4 tbs jam (i used razzleberry but strawberry could taste just as good)
4 tbs cream cheese


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1. let puff pasty sit in room temperature for about 20-30 minutes to defrost
2. preheat your oven to 428°F.
3. when puff pastry is defrosted and soft, unfold it and cut it into 4 pieces
4. put a quarter of the jam & cream cheese in the center of each piece
5. bring the four corners of the puff pastry together to form a parcel (make sure the edges are tightly sealed so that as little jam as possible leaks when baking)
6. bake for about 20 minutes or until golden
7. dust with powdered sugar & enjoy!

honey and gold

doesn't this photo (leo patrone for kinfolk) make you want to throw a party and invite all your favorite people? guess what y'all, there's an excuse for that this week and it's called thanksgiving. 

i hope you all have a wonderful day of feasting (even if you're not in the states and you just want to set aside a day to see family, eat well and give thanks)! it's amazing how many things i can find to be thankful for when i actually look outside of myself and the things i find daily to be discontent about. i have a roof over my head, a wonderful husband, a craft i can really find joy in and wonderful people who are kind enough to call me sister and friend. God is so good!

happy thanksgiving!  

leif shop

loving these sweet little items from leif shop ... perfect as stocking stuffers!

(mug, brass spoon, ring, watercolor scarf, sea urchin, horse) 

where the road goes

haven't updated this blog in a while (famous words of mine) because i've been so busy catching up on work and going in & out of town for weddings.  this past weekend, the husband & i shot the most special & intimate little wedding up in the hills of topanga canyon. (fun fact: the groom is the co-editor of a show we love very much .... think zombies & the south!). thought i'd share with you a fun snap!

the weather has been quite unbearable even in our typically breezy area of california, but fall is on the mind & pumpkin spice lattes are out and i feel good. i like to think of the autumn version of myself as the best version of myself, you know, because sweet warm drinks and nippy weather naturally bring about productivity.

and dear readers, i promise to try and share our honeymoon photos soon!

new shelves!

i finally had some shelving put up in my tiny office; i still have to organize a bit, but i'm obsessed with them! i'm embarrassed how long it's taking us to get settled in and organized (that's what we get for getting married/moving during wedding season), but any kind of accomplishment should be celebrated, right?

what small victories have you had today?

garlic parmesan pita bites

i've been working a lot in my make-shift office, and other than working, the thing i do the most is snacking. i have absolutely no self control when it comes to food within reach :(. my favorite new (super simple) snack to make & eat lately: garlic pita bread bites (with parmesan)!



cast of characters: 

pita bread, cut into small pieces
butter
crushed garlic
dried italian-style seasoning (if you don't have any, just mix some dried thyme, oregano and basil)
grated parmesan cheese

(no exact measurements, it really just depends on how much pita you're using and how garlic-y/cheesy you like your food)

-----

1. preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
2. cut your pita bread into small pieces (i slice about 6 slices per round) & arrange on a baking sheet.
3. in a small saucepan, melt the butter (over medium heet) and mix in garlic & seasoning. pour it over your pita pieces!
4. sprinkle with cheese and bake for 10 minutes (a little less if you don't want it too crispy, a little more if you like extra crispy)
5. enjoy! i like mine with some hummus, but it is equally good without!

home sweet home

even though we've been in our house for about a month and a half now, we're not making a huge amount of progress in settling in (as you can tell by my bare office...the mess is conveniently pushed off beyond the camera's view). all the furniture is set up, but i still have a lot of funiture to buy for my office (yay, we have an extra room for my office!) as well as fun little decor items for the rest of the house. my mother-in-law is coming this weekend so i have a great incentive to get a move on it! 

even though i love our little home (so much beautiful light and perpetually beautiful weather)... we don't know anyone in the area and i most definitely need to get out of the house more during the week. especially since i'm mostly at the computer answering emails or editing images with nary a soul in sight (afternoon pajamas and messy hair testify to this on too often an occasion).  to conclude, i must say that married life is wonderful and complete. my most favorite part of the day is greeting my husband when he comes home and going to bed together!

summer eats

since it's the first summer i've spent out of LA where summer = unbearably hot weather (and the constant sunburning of my fair skin), i'm enjoying it rather immensely. we're still settling in (catching up on work has taken up most of my time), but i can't wait to have everything in order and invite a few friends over for breakfast/lunch/dinner! how delicious do these sound to accompany your summer meal:


- white peach lavender soda

- grilled corn with cheese and lime (mexican corn, yum!)

- fig, gorgonzola & honey tartines

- avocado & romaine salad (woe to me for being allergic to avocado..)

- poached eggs on toast with cream cheese, salmon & capers

- grilled peach with honey & ice cream


(photo via nouvelle/nouveau )

breakfast bits

digging the bits of color left over from today's breakfast.

ana montiel

illustrations by london-based, spanish visual artist ana montiel.

blessed

i am so blessed. today is mother's day so i'm giving thanks for my mother, whose beauty cannot be fully completely captured by my insufficient words. happy mother's day to a single mother who made it her life's mission to give herself to her loved ones -- generously, abundantly, selflessly, gently/tenderly and completely... physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. i have an amazing and most beautiful woman for a mother. (here she is in a photo as a little girl!)

in addition, i'm also giving thanks today (and for the rest of my days) for my handsome, amazing, funny,  servant-hearted fiance. it was my birthday last week and even though we're on a budget (getting married, and all), he planned a tiny celebration for the two of us. in addition to a most delicious dinner (proscuitto-wrapped chicken, stuffed with breadcrumbs, dried cherries and herbs), he got me the loveliest cake and a copy of elizabeth messina's new book!





(these are at our new home by the way... can't show any photos right now because we have barely any furnishings)

juxtaposition

i'm loving this space, part of an 18th century old flat remodeled by architect benedetta tagliabue. she had the crew stop whilst working and leave this amazing celebration of the old structure and the new.

"No sketches or models were devised; nor was there a master plan of the type so popular for signature residences by many architects of their caliber. As Tagliabue has stated, the house itself, and its history, steered the direction of the works. "

read more here.

i was born by the river

it's the home stretch guys! i have exactly 29 days (excluding today) until i become a mrs! i'm getting a bit anxious because we've been dealing with some not-so-reliable vendors and because so many of the things on my monthly to-do lists for this wedding have been pushed into the month of may. however, there's a silver lining too: we signed the lease on our new home (hence, all the pins of interiors on my pinterest lately)!

this last period has been very bittersweet and full of mixed feelings. i don't usually talk about very serious/personal things here, but one of the most difficult things about this period of time is my grandmother. she has fourth-stage lung cancer, but by God's grace has been okay for the most part living on her own... until the past couple weeks. the wonderful part of having my own business, is my ability to go and see her in the middle of the week and just help where needed. last week when i went to see her, i found that she had fallen in the restroom and couldn't get up for hours. we took her to the ER, where the doctor found fractures in both feet and in her hip. i know i shouldn't, but i feel so guilty that my wedding is during this period of time, where our family has more than enough to deal with. yet, despite what seems to be a bad situation, i trust that God is working and using the seemingly bad for his good plans.

it's definitely been hard to be 100% at life: relationships, managing my business, preparing for marriage, etc.. i definitely feel that i'm not doing well in either category because i'm constantly being pulled to and from each one. i keep waiting for the period of time after the wedding when i can focus on one thing and be excellent at it, but i know that's not the nature of life :).  in any case, here's looking forward to finally getting hitched!

i wish i could post photos of the things we're working on but i want it to be a surprise!



(image: nicolette's studio via odette)

pretty paper

just wanted to share some pretty paper today, just because.
top: liner paper used for our invites; bottom: our engagement photo packaging!

ana kraš

i wish i could purchase this clothing rack somewhere. designed by ana kraš, it is such a tasteful solution for a small space! made from oak sticks and plywood panels, i love the colored bottom and lightbulb companion.



and i'm sure you've seen these bonbon lamps also designed by ana.. would make a lovely DIY project for a rainy day (if you had the right wire frame):

ship & shape

 really admiring all the unique items from ship & shape's store (a collection of pieces from a bunch of different artists)! i especially love those mini hanging planters, they come in 5 colors!

developing days

it's been crazy y'all.

i can't believe we only have 2+ months left till the big day!  i try not to freak out when i look at my to-do list and there are still a million things in the march category. i'm already behind on invites, i  designed the main parts in what time i had free over the course of 1-2 days.  i still have 100 booklets to design and sew together... sigh. i can't wait until all i see is strike-throughs on my list.  i'm thankful that pretty much most of our vendors are booked and within our humble budget (and one of them will be a fun surprise for our guests).

saturday, T and i went down to SD for premarital (we have only 1 left!) and tried to go back in time and live up our college days. sadly, it was pouring the entire day and we left feeling a bit jipped (we didn't even get any carne asada fries!). the next day, i assisted the lovely jen (iartu) and shot  justina blakeney's wedding. i was so stoked to shoot at her little jungalow, which was a small space transformed into a magical space.

the very next day i got sick (as i so often do), and declared the day a no-work/editing day....and originally a no-computer day until i couldn't help but watch an episode of the walking dead (my new guilty pleasure). yesterday was back to work and today was wedding errand day. i almost regret my choice to make my own envelope liners. to end a perfectly productive day of driving around, i also got back a roll of film... the act of which i think is one of life's greatest simple joys (even if it's just a test roll to test out a new body).

tiny collections

luci everett for the design files.

hector lamp

i would love to have this birchwood pendant light from etsy in my home.

kinfolk brooklyn dinner

anything kinfolk + leo patrone touches is gold... loving this simple/intimate and and yet quintessentially "kinfolk" dinner.

twigs and honey

i don't think i've coveted something for my wedding this much until now. i'm pretty much head over heels in love with the new twigs and honey 2012 collection. i've decided i must stop looking at the pieces though because the ones i love are way out of my budget (that lovely top left number).  too sad.

weekend snips

 a few film shots from the night before this weekend's wedding.

lonely hearts: summer 2012 lookbook

loving these soft neutral and pastel looks from the lonely hearts summer 2012 look book!
(via studdedhearts)

our engagement photos

 thought i'd finally share our lovely engagement photos shot by the even more lovely jill thomas. i'm so excited and flattered because they got featured today on oncewed! setting up the tablecloths and wooden posts took quite some effort, but i think it totally paid off. i'm also relieved we don't look awkward... with me being behind the camera usually and T being camera-shy, we were bracing ourselves for the worst!